Nan's Alphabet

 This post came from the fourth grandson Thomas. As the only west coast grandson for many decades before the internet age I kept in touch with the east coast family through Nan's letters, packages of random goodies, and of course summer trips to Pennsylvania. Nan made sure I came for the reunion which were crazy, fun and memorable. I'd fly alone and she'd pick me up at the airport with balloons, treats and hugs. One particular reunion sticks out when we all stayed at a camp somewhere outside of our town. It had a big pool, rustic cabins, picnic areas and fields to play. Nan got me settled into my  cabin with some other cool cousins (they were all cool in my eyes) and let me unpack. I asked her if I needed my paper airplane ticket anymore. She said no so a little while later I tore it up and threw it away. I'm not sure why I tore it up but for some reason I was compelled to do so. Soon after, Nan realized I had torn up my return ticket home. Well the sent her into a pani

 My sisters were given different genes-same parents, maybe because I was the first girl born I did not get Gene - go shopping and  pick out clothes that match Gene - clean your house til it is spotless Gene - always get good grades Gene - be the prettiest girl in the class Gene - have all of the teachers like you because you don't talk back Gene - what ever you wear matches your shoes and bow in your hair Gene - know the answer to every question from the teacher Gene - your hair is always perfect Gene - be a good cook, a good baker of pies, cakes and desserts Gene - to hang up your clothes as soon as you get home Gene - make your bed as soon as you get out of it Gene - want to wear pajamas When my youngest son was in 2nd grade he came home crying. He told me all of the kids at school teased him because he had big ears. An earlier blog mentioned that Nan hated her ears. They were too big. My son at the age of 7 had the same problem. I thought about it and decided what to do. I  have

 When I lived overseas while my husband was serving in the military, Nan and I talked several times a week. Even with the 8 hour time zone change we found a way to communicate. So far away from family I wanted to catch up with baptisms, first communions, confirmation, happenings at the library and just stuff to keep me up to date on family issues. This continued for the next forty years. When I filed for divorce Nan called me every day for 3 months and told me to go back to my husband and those children, her grandchildren, needed a father. Every day I had to listen to her reasoning of why divorce is bad for children and harms them for life. I would always answer the phone because we did not have a display on the phones for who was calling. It was 1975. I was taught that your mother was always right no matter what the topic. You listened and did what you were told to do. I did not listen. When my daughter was in first grade she came home from school and told me that the boy sitting next

 I have a friend that lives two blocks from her sister, 3 blocks from her mother, 4 blocks from her best friend and 6 blocks from their church. They talk on the phone at least once a day, they know what to pick up at the grocery store without asking each other. They stick a Hershey bar on the drivers side seat of the car because you know their every move. So many families now are disconnected. My mother in law did not speak to her sister for 25 years until 1 year before she died. They lived 5 miles apart, it was over an unkind word spoken in haste and anger. Why do we hold a grudge against the people we love? Do we want to hurt the people we love the most? When Nan was in her 60's she lived 6 months in Florida and 6 months in New York. She worked for a wealthy couple that traveled and she traveled with them as their nurse. One of my sisters wanted Nan to come home for the birthday of her daughter. Nan was committed to filling shifts of alternate nurses for the couple, at the last m

 Many children are fearful of their parents because they discipline them. Sometimes they deserve it and sometimes the parents are wrong. They choose the wrong child to punish because none of the children will tell tales about the other sibling. I was 8, my sister was 7 and my other sister was 5. The boys slept downstairs, we slept in the third floor attic, all three of us in one double bed. There were 16 steps straight down to the the second floor. There was a door at the bottom of the steps that locked us in the attic from the outside. IT was a hook and eye device, if we slipped a comic book between the door and the frame we could unhook it. There was no bathroom in the attic. Lucky for us none of us wet the bed. We used to carry on constantly when our mother put us to bed at 7pm. We would jump on the bed, hold hands and dance around the room making very loud noises. At least once a night my father would come up the steps and beat us with a belt, a hairbrush or strap. He knew never to

 Animals were always apart of our family. Starting in 1951 we always had Beagles in our house. Whether the dog was a male or female their name was always LuLu. Front time to time, I mentioned there were other breeds in the home but Beagles were our go to dog. One more thing for Nan to clean up after. One time she was visiting Abigails' home, she decided to take their female dog Stella out for a walk. They lived in a rural part of a southern state surrounded by a heavily wooded area. Stella was 150 pounds of solid Husky. She was calm and playful in the home, shedding hair with every step she took. The leash was on and the storm door was open. As Nan proceeded to push open the screen door Stella saw a squirrel. Nan had the leash in one hand and the door in the other hand. Stella took off running, ignoring the 125 pound lady flying behind her. Nan literally flew out the door with hands and feet in the air like a jet plane. She forgot to let go as Stella took a 25 foot hop toward the s